A Fathers Advice
by toria55
Summary: Jack gives Syd fatherly advice on her relationship with VL
1. Default Chapter

Author: toria55  
  
Rating: G  
  
Spoilers: None  
  
Disclaimer: Alias and all it's characters are owned by JJ Abrams and ABC. This story is not intended to infringe on the copyrights of the original creators. It is written for entertainment purposes only and is not intended for profit in anyway. This was first posted 10/18/2003  
  
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Chapter 1  
  
Director Dixon had sent an email informing his team of agents that there would be a meeting at 2PM in the west end briefing room. Lauren Reed took what was becoming her usual spot, next her husband. Sydney Bristow sat on the opposite side of the squared off tables. Eric Weiss sat to her left and Marshall Flinkman to her right. Jack Bristow was already seated at the front table with Marcus Dixon.  
  
Once all the members were seated Dixon stood up and called the meeting to order. "We're here to discuss the latest development regarding the Covenant," he informed the players. "The NSC recently raided what they believe to be a prime cell located in Stuttgart, Germany. Ms. Reed will give us an updated on what was found."  
  
As Director Dixon sat down, Lauren Reed stood up. "Thank you," she said as she turned on the computer monitor so that she could present a blueprint of the building that was raided. She also displayed photographs and background information on the three men who were killed during the raid.  
  
"This man, right here, survived," she informed the room. "So far, he has been extremely helpful in our investigation. He has informed us that Hans Von Buren, one of the three men killed during the raid, was the leader of this particular cell. Von Buren was closely associated with Gunnar Lexikon who was last seen in Grossglockner, Austria. Mr. Lexikon is reported to be a key player in organizing these various cells across Europe."  
  
Lauren then walked around the room passing out folders that contained details of the upcoming mission. As she passed out the folders she told the room, "The mission, that I have drawn up, will require that Michael, Eric and Sydney go to Austria and bring Lexikon back to the United States. Once he is here we will be able to extract whatever intelligence he has to offer."  
  
After perusing the mission the look that Sydney and Weiss shared clearly confirm that they did not approve of the layout. Sydney looked over at Vaughn to see if he had the same reaction. What she noticed was that he did not look up from what he was reading. She was sure he was deliberately avoiding eye contact with her.  
  
"Are there any questions?" Lauren inquired.  
  
Sydney was the first to speak. It was clear that she was not ready to accept the mission the way it was laid out. "You've got to be kidding if you think this plan has a chance in hell to be pulled off. I'd also like to know why we should take the word of a man like Hans Von Buren that any of this is even true?"  
  
"The NSC was able to verify 95% of the information we obtained from Mr. Von Buren," Lauren responded. Then with a tinge of defensiveness, she told Sydney, "There is no reason for us to doubt the rest of what he has told us. As for this mission, it was personally approved of by Robert Lindsey."  
  
"Personally approved by Robert Lindsey? Well theirs your proof that it won't work," Sydney said without hiding the contempt she felt toward Robert Lindsey.  
  
"I beg your pardon!" Lauren responded. Then as though she was scolding Sydney, she added, "I really do not think your attitude toward the NSC is appropriate. You've judged this plan before you even had a chance to hear it presented."  
  
Sydney did not appreciate the condescending tone that Lauren was using. She could feel the heat building in her face as she informed Lauren, "I don't need to hear it presented, I've just read it. It has so many flaws in it that I wouldn't beginning to be able to know how to plug up the holes."  
  
"Well Sydney, plugging the holes is not your job, is it?" Lauren informed her, calmly.  
  
"No, my job is just to put my ass on the line and try and pull this disaster off," Sydney replied letting her know just how annoyed she was getting.  
  
Continuing to remain clam, Lauren suggested to her, "If you don't want to do this, I'm sure Mr. Dixon would be glad to accept your resignation."  
  
"My resignation!" Sydney scream out. "Don't think you're going to get rid of me that easy."  
  
Dixon looked over at Jack who made no move to stop the bickering that was occurring. Dixon realized that their was no point in continuing with the meeting given the climate in the room.  
  
He stood up and announced, "I think we all need to take time out to study this plan more closely. I have control over the final decision on what part of the plan will be implemented. I'll let you know my decision in the next few days. In the meantime, there are other more constructive things we can be doing."  
  
At hearing the announcement that the meeting was over, Sydney stood up and stormed out of the room. She left her folder sitting on the table. Marshall, Dixon and Weiss quietly followed behind her.  
  
Jack stood up slowly and gathered up his folder and the note pad that he came in with. As he left the room he observed Lauren and Vaughn watching him. He picked up Sydney's folder and walked out without saying a word to either of them.  
  
Once they are alone, Lauren informed her husband, "That man makes me nervous."  
  
"Don't let him get to you," Vaughn told her as he laid his hand on her arm. "It's a game he likes to play. He likes to make people feel inferior by intimidation." He then gave his wife a warning. "But Lauren, stay away from him. He can be dangerous."  
  
Lauren was surprised at the intensity of her husband's remark. She asked him, "You've had problems with him?"  
  
"Everyone's had problems with him." Vaughn informed her.  
  
They looked out the glass door of the briefing room and saw Jack talking to Sydney. "Not everyone," Lauren observed. "He seems to get along pretty well with his little princess."  
  
"Yea well, they seem to have bonded, but trust me, they've had their problems," Vaughn said, remembering the distrust that once existed between father and daughter.  
  
"Come on, I don't want to talk about the Bristows anymore," he told his wife as he wrapped his arm around her waist and escorted her out of the room and safely past the Bristows. 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2  
  
When Sydney stormed out of the briefing room she was so furious she didn't know what to do with herself. Weiss was trying to calm her down, when Jack approached them.  
  
"Sydney I need to speak to you," he told her.  
  
Weiss had a general idea what Jack wanted to talk to her about and he felt it would be best if he left them alone. "I'll see you later," he said as he gave her a sympathetic pat on the back.  
  
"What do you want?" Sydney asked as she braced herself for the lecture she knew was coming.  
  
"Here, you left this inside," he said as he attempted to hand her the mission brief.  
  
"I have no intention of carrying out that mission. I would think that you would have been the first one to defend me in there. Don't tell me you think that plan can be carried out?" She said, as she refused to take the folder from him.  
  
Jack started to tell her what he thought of the plan, but stopped when Sydney's attention was drawn toward Vaughn and Lauren, as they walked by. He realized that the middle of the Op Tech was to public of a place to say what he had to say. Sydney reluctantly followed him into his office.  
  
Closing the door he said to her. "Sydney, this is not high school and he is not the captain of the football team."  
  
"What is that suppose mean?" she asked, trying to keep her cool.  
  
"It means that I do not want to ever see you act like that again," he chided her.  
  
"Me?" she replied, miffed that her father would find fault in what she did. "What are you talking about? That plan of her's..."  
  
"It is not 'her's.' It is the plan approved by the National Security Council," Jack pointed out.  
  
Still not ready to concede that her behavior was anything but professional, Sydney told him, "She's the one who wrote it, along with that imbecile Lindsey."  
  
"That is exactly what I am talking about. You're reacting with your emotions." Taking a deep breath, Jack decided to say what he had been avoiding, "Sydney, face it. You lost him. It's time for you to move on."  
  
Sydney was appalled that her father would conclude that her objection over the mission was due to her feelings for Vaughn. "You think this is because of that?" she asked him  
  
Jack answered her with a stare that affirmed that was what he believe her outburst was about.  
  
Sounding indignant, Sydney justified her actions by saying, "My objection to this mission has nothing to do with my feelings for Vaughn. This plan is so full of flaws that it is dangerous. That is my only objection to it."  
  
Jack answered his daughter by continuing to glare at her, which in turn made Sydney feel uncomfortable. She decided that it was time to leave. As she rose from her seat Jack stood in front of her and demand that she remain seated.  
  
There was something in the way that he ordered her to remain seated that made her feel like a child in trouble for skipping school. When she reclaimed her seat she crossed one knee over the other. She let him know that she was growing impatient; by the way she swung her crossed leg. "I hope you don't plan on lecturing me about my private affairs," she said as she looked away from him.  
  
"Private affairs? Is that what you're plan on doing, having an affair with him?" Jack inquired.  
  
"No, of course not," Sydney said, as she put both feet on the ground and sat up straight. She was instantly sorry for her choice of words.  
  
"Then what, Sydney? Do you plan on repeatedly insulting his wife until you convince him that she's a dunderhead and that he belongs to you?" Jack asked her as he sat on the edge of his desk, forcing her to look at him.  
  
Sydney stood up and facing her father, she said, "You don't really think I should be taking relationship advise from you of all people, do you?"  
  
Jack stood up also and standing only an inch from her face he calmly, but firmly, told her, "Sit down and don't get up again until I tell you to."  
  
Frightened by the look he gave her, Sydney slowly sat back down. "Who do you...."  
  
"You know, you can learn a lot from my mistakes," Jack said, interrupting her. Then softening his voice, he told her, "Sydney, he made his choice. Your pining after him is only going to make..."  
  
Noticing that he wasn't getting through to her, Jack exhaled an exasperated breath and asked her, "Do you really think it's dignified to salivate after him, the way that you are?"  
  
"How dare you! That is not what I am doing." Sydney said as she folded her arms tightly in front of her.  
  
Jack felt a stabbing pain in his chest, as he saw the hurt in Sydney's eyes, caused by what he had said to her. In spite of the pain, he felt he had to continue. "Yes, you are. I see it every time you're in the same room with him. You want him. Your body language says that you're just waiting for him to cruel his finger in your direction, and you'll be there."  
  
Sydney was enraged that her father would say such a thing to her. "Dad, I can't believe you're insulting me like this."  
  
"Sydney, you're the one insulting yourself. Now you have a few choices, here. You can forget about him and move on with your life, you can offer yourself as his mistress, or...."  
  
"Or maybe you can give me a crash course on how to shutdown my emotions, altogether?" she suggested coldly.  
  
Jack straightened his back and Sydney saw a sheet of ice form over his eyes. It was that icy look she remembered from her childhood. "I can do that," he told her. "Here's your first lesson. First, every time you see a flower that he ever gave you, you crush it." He said as he crumbed a sheet of paper and threw it in the wastebasket.  
  
"Encountering a man wearing his cologne could be hard to handle. It may make you physically ill the first few times, but eventually the smell of your own vomit will be more potent than the smell of the cologne."  
  
Sydney sat stunned at the intensity with which he was talking. She tried to tell him to stop, as she realized he was recounting what he did to deal with her mother's death.  
  
Ignoring her plea to stop, he continued, "You might also want to stop reading books. Even spy novels have love stories in them. The best thing to do is gather up as many books as you can and a cheap bottle of vodka, then have bonfire in your fireplace. You'll find great pleasure in ripping the pages out one by one and watching them disintegrate in the flames."  
  
"All right, you can stop now. You made your point," Sydney repeated.  
  
"No, Sydney." Jack said, as lean toward her. "I'm not done. You see, in order to really pull this off, you'll have to learn to live without music. Do you think you can do that? At first you can just stop listening to the songs that remind you of him. But eventually you figure out that there's a phrase in every song that reminds you of what you had"  
  
"And dancing, there's no point in ever going dancing again, because no one will fit in your arms the way that she did. No one's hair will be as soft as her's, or smell as fresh as her's...," Jack inhaled sharply as he realized what he was saying.  
  
Sydney stood up and placed her hands on his shoulders. She told him softly, "I get what you're saying, Dad. Your right. I need to pull myself together. I won't embarrass either one of us like that again. I promise."  
  
She then picked up the folder containing the day's briefing and she left his office.  
  
"Lauren," Sydney said, as she found her at her desk. "I want to apologize for my reaction to your briefing. Although I have issues with the plan, I shouldn't have reacted the way that I did. I assure you it won't happen again."  
  
"Thank you." Lauren said, stunned at the sincerity of Sydney's apology. 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3  
  
Three days after the first briefing, regarding the raid in Stuttgart, Germany, Director Dixon reconvened the meeting.  
  
"Thank you all for coming and being on time," he said, once everyone was seated. "There were some changes made to the mission Ms. Reed present the other day. This report contains the revisions," he said, as he handed out the folders containing the final draft of the operation, to capture Gunnar Lexikon  
  
Dixon allowed everyone a few minutes to review the revisions.  
  
After reviewing the first few pages, Lauren asked inquisitively, "I've never seen this before. Who approved it?"  
  
"The NSC did," Dixon answered, simply  
  
Sounding defensive, for having been kept out of the loop, Lauren questioned him further, "Mr. Lindsey never said anything to me about approving a revised plan."  
  
The one thing Dixon disliked about his new position was the politics of it. He knew the question was coming and he was dreading the moment. "Mr. Lindsey is not the one who approved the revisions," he informed her. "If you look at the last page, you will that his boss gave the final approval."  
  
Everyone quickly flipped to the final page and was properly stunned to see the signature and seal of Condoleezza Rice.  
  
Before Lauren had a chance to recover from the shock of seeing Ms. Rice's approval on the plan, Dixon continued with the meeting. "Jack, will give us a run down on the plan, as it is now written."  
  
Following Dixon's directions, Jack stood up and instructed the room members to open their folders. He then gave them a step-by-step run down of what role each agent would play in the capture of Gunnar Lexikon. He also went over, in detail, what method would be used to have Lexikon transported to a secure location in Oxford, England, where he would be 'debriefed.'  
  
After Jack completed the run through he resumed his seat and Dixon once again took over. "Is this agreeable to everyone," he asked, surveying the room, one agent at a time.  
  
"Yes," Sydney answered, first. "This plan appears to be very well grounded. I have no problem with it."  
  
Agent Vaughn replied next, "It looks good."  
  
"Weiss?" Dixon called, when he was slow to respond.  
  
Weiss had been rereading the plan. He looked up and assured the director, "I'm all for it."  
  
"Marshall, do you think you can create the equipment we will need?"  
  
"Should be simple enough," Marshall confirmed.  
  
Finally he asked the one person with whom he was not looking forward to hearing from. "Ms. Reed, do you have any questions?"  
  
Lauren was still stuck on the question of how the plan was revised without her knowledge. "I don't understand. Who did these revisions?" she demanded to know.  
  
At this point it was obvious to Dixon that everyone in the room, except Lauren Reed, knew who revised the original plan. Dixon decided that there was no point in stalling. "Agent Bristow did," he told her. He then gestured to Jack so that she knew exactly which Bristow he was referring to.  
  
"Oh, I see." Lauren said. Then forgetting the advice that her husband had given her, just three days before, Lauren decided to challenge Jack.  
  
"Before we go, I just want to remind you, Mr. Bristow, that this is supposed to be a joint operation," she said, pompously, "I'd appreciate that the next time you decide to revise a plan that the NSC instituted, that you consult with me first. Before you go over my head."  
  
"She shouldn't have said that," Weiss said under his breath, so that only Sydney could hear.  
  
Jack stood up, prepared to leave the room. Before leaving, he looked at Lauren and informed her calmly, "Ms. Reed, the next time I'm in need of your vast five years of insight, I will consult with you, first. But, I highly doubt I'll ever need advice on how to write an airtight pardon for a mass murderer." He then walked out of the briefing room.  
  
Sydney remained in her seat, with her head down, clearly struggling to suppress a smile.  
  
Feeling humiliated at Jack's comments, Lauren decided that Sydney was a safer target for her ire. "You know, someday you aren't going to have Daddy around to give you what you want."  
  
"I beg your pardon? I don't know what you're talking about," Sydney said, with her smile securely suppressed.  
  
"Lauren, don't," Vaughn said to her, in an attempt to quash the tirade he knew was going to follow.  
  
Ignoring her husband, Lauren told Sydney, "Oh please, don't play innocent with me. It's obvious he rewrote the original plan just because it was produced by the NSC."  
  
Following the direction of her father, Sydney also stood up, prepared to exit the room. On her way out she informed Lauren, "You obviously don't know my father, because if you did, you would know that he is a master strategist and he would never make a decision based on spiteful emotions, especially when the lives of his agents are involved."  
  
Then glancing at Vaughn, who was looking totally frustrated, she said, "I'm sure your husband will confirm that for me. Right, Michael?"  
  
It wasn't the question that took Vaughn by surprise. It was the fact that she addressed him by his first name. "That's right, Lauren. Jack wouldn't revise the plan just to show up the NSC."  
  
Once Vaughn confirmed her statement, Sydney quietly left the room.  
  
Later in the day, Vaughn cornered Sydney and asked her. "What's this 'Michael' thing?"  
  
Sydney suspected he was surprised at the term she used to address him, and she expected him to confront her about it. "Calling you Vaughn was based on our prior relationship. It was an enduring term. It is no longer appropriate to address you in such a personal manner," she informed him.  
  
"Oh, I see," he said, sounding disappointed in her decision.  
  
"You don't have a problem with me calling you by your first name, do you?"  
  
Realizing that Sydney's decision to move on was best for everyone, he said, "No, not at all. You're right. "  
  
"Good. Then I think we have an appointment with Marshall," she said as she walked away from him and head to the lab.  
  
Just before Sydney was ready to leave for the day, she stopped by Jack's office. "Dad, we're headed for the airport."  
  
"Alright, come home safely," he told her.  
  
"I will," she said as she turned and walked out. She quickly returned to his office to deliver one more message. "Before I go, I just wanted you to know that as a strategist you're brilliant. As for your father-knows-best routine.,"  
  
Jack always felt that he had no right to interfere in Sydney's personal life, so he was nervous about her comment. "Yes?" he said, waiting for her to continue.  
  
She gave him a warm smile and said, "You're not bad at that either." 


	4. Final Chapter

A/N - I'm completely neutral on the Sydney/Vaughn relationship. I watch Alias solely for Jack.  
  
The conclusion of this story in no way reflects what I want to see happen with the S/V ship. It's just a natural progression of this particular story.  
  
Chapter 4  
  
Nine days after having been sent to Austria, Sydney was at her desk putting the final touches on her report. Vaughn approached her to see if she needed any help.  
  
"No, Michael, I just finished. I'm headed to Dixon's office to deliver this to him."  
  
"Great, I'll walk over there with you, if you don't mind."  
  
"No, no at all," Sydney told him.  
  
When they arrived at Dixon's office, Director Dixon was just leaving his office on his way to a meeting. He accepted the report from Sydney and Vaughn and took it with him to his meeting.  
  
As Sydney and Vaughn started to head back to their workstations, Jack Bristow and Brent Wickliff approached them.  
  
"Wick? Is that you?" Sydney asked, obviously pleased to see him.  
  
"Sydney!" Brent said, as he approached and gave her a hug. "It's so good to see you. I couldn't believe it when I heard you were back. You look great."  
  
"You mean for someone back from the dead?" she asked, teasingly.  
  
"No, I just mean you look great," he said, with a smile.  
  
Before he could say anymore, Vaughn broke in with his own greeting. "Nice to see you, Wick," he said, as he offered him his hand.  
  
"Hey, Vaughn. Sorry, I didn't see you there," Brent said, as he returned the handshake. "I heard you got married. Congratulations."  
  
"Thanks," Vaughn replied.  
  
Brent then turned his attention back to Sydney and said, "Wow, Sydney, you look great."  
  
Feeling a little embarrassed by the attention she was getting, Sydney pointed out, "You already said that."  
  
"Did I? Well, it's true. Isn't Vaughn?"  
  
"Yea," Vaughn answered. He then glanced at Jack and decided to change the subject. "So what brings you here? If I remember right, you were out in D.C."  
  
"I was, but I heard there was an opening out here and I applied for it. A week later, I'm on a plane. Did you ever see the CIA move so fast, before?"  
  
Looking suspiciously at Jack, Vaughn said, "No, that's unusual. I didn't realize we had any openings here."  
  
Now it was Jack's turn to change the subject. He told Sydney, "Sydney, Brent and I just made dinner plans. Would you like to join us?"  
  
Sydney was surprised that her father made a dinner date with another agent. She had never known him to do so.  
  
Vaughn was also surprised to hear that Jack made dinner plans with an agent. In all the years that he's known him he has not once seen Jack share lunch with an agent, let alone go out to dinner with one.  
  
Before Sydney had a chance to accept or decline the invitation, Brent pleaded with her, "That would be great. How 'bout it? You think you could join us?"  
  
Having no reason not to, Sydney said, "Sure. I don't have any plans for dinner."  
  
"Great," Jack said. "Then I'll see the two of you around five-thirty?"  
  
Jack then spoke to Vaughn, for the first time. "Vaughn, I need to talk to you in my office, about your next assignment."  
  
"Alright," Vaughn answered him, without making any attempt to follow.  
  
Jack turned and said, "Vaughn, are you coming?"  
  
"Yea," Vaughn said, as he said good-bye to Brent and Sydney.  
  
At five-thirty Brent came by Sydney's desk. "Are you ready?" he asked her.  
  
"Sure, Wick. Just let me ring my Dad and we can go," she said, as she picked up her phone to call her father's extension.  
  
"Wait, Sydney," he said, before she had a chance to dial. He was actually surprised that she didn't know that her father was not joining them for dinner. "Jack's gone. He said he had a last minute meeting and wouldn't be able to join us."  
  
"Oh?" she said, more confused than surprised.  
  
Realizing Sydney hadn't been told about the change in plans, he told her, "If you don't want to..."  
  
"No, Wick, don't be silly. I'm just surprised that he didn't tell me he wouldn't be joining us." Sydney then picked up her jacket. As Brent helped her put it on, she asked him, "Where would you like to go?"  
  
"Well, Jack said he made reservations at Ryder's on the Water. He said it's a new restaurant on the coastline."  
  
"That's were he made reservations?" This time there was no hiding the surprise in her reaction.  
  
"That's what he said, I've got the address right here," Brent said as he reached into his pocket to pull out the directions Jack had given him. Then looking at Sydney, he asked, "Why are you smiling like that?"  
  
Her smile became broader, as she slowly shook her head. She informed him, "Wick, I think we've just been set up."  
  
Confused by what she was talking about, he asked, "What do you mean?"  
  
"Ryder's is a night club."  
  
Everything was getting clearer for Brent, also. "Are you telling me that Jack's playing matchmaker?" he asked Sydney.  
  
Nodding her head in confirmation, she told him, "As hard as that is to believe, I think he is."  
  
Then concerned that Brent would take offense to her father's manipulations, she offered him a way out. "Listen, we don't have to go, if you don't want to. I'll talk to my father tomorrow and tell him his little scheme didn't work."  
  
Sounding disappointed that their evening would be cancelled, he told her, "Listen, don't tell your dad this, but I was glad to hear him canceling out. I want to go out with you, unless you want to cancel?"  
  
"No, Wick. I don't want to cancel," she said, as she wrapped her arm around his and they headed for a night of fine food, dance and a new friendship.  
  
4/4  
  
A/N - All you S/V shippers, feel free to tell me you didn't like the ending. I can take it. 


End file.
